The present invention broadly relates to endoscopic surgical instruments. More particularly, the invention relates to disposable endoscopic lung clamps which are usefu in thoracoscopic procedures.
Endoscopy procedures such as thoracoscopy and laparoscopy have recently become widely practiced surgical procedures. A laparoscopy procedure typically involves incising through the navel and through the abdominal wall for viewing and/or operating on the ovaries, uterus, gall bladder, bowels, appendix, etc. More recently, incisions and insertion of trocar tubes have been made in different areas of the abdomen and even in the chest cavity (thoracoscopy). Typically, trocars are utilized for creating the incisions. Trocar tubes are left in place in the abdominal or thoracic wall so that the endoscopic surgical tools may be inserted through the tube. A camera or magnifying lens is often inserted through the largest diameter trocar tube (e.g. 10 mm diameter), while a cutter, dissector, or other surgical instrument is inserted through a similarly sized or smaller diameter trocar tube (e.g. 5 mm diameter) for purposes of manipulating and/or cutting the internal organ. Sometimes it is desirable to have several trocar tubes in place at once in order to receive several surgical instruments. In this manner, organ or tissue may be grasped with one surgical instrument, and simultaneously may be cut or stitched with another surgical instrument; all under view of the surgeon via the camera in place in the navel trocar tube.
Previous to the present invention, endoscopic tools have utilized connecting mechanisms for imparting pivotal motion to the manipulating members of the end effectors. These tools, however, have utilized either single pivot mechanisms specifically designed to avoid protrusions outside of the outline of the endoscopic tool so as to avoid any inadvertent contact with tissue of a patient, or double pivot mechanisms such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,636 to Schmidt where the manipulating members are directly actuated by the axial movement of a common reciprocating member. While such tools have functioned adequately for many of their intended purposes, these endoscopic tools have not enabled the desired amount of gripping or cutting force important in the manipulation of large vessels or organs, such as might be required in procedures involving, e.g., intestinal organs. Also, previous to the present invention, thoracoscopic lung clamps having end effectors of two inches or more in length, and cut-outs in the distal portion of the end effectors were not available to the art.